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North Carolina State Bar

by Armistead Jones Maupin, 2006

The North Carolina State Bar was created by the General Assembly in 1933 as an agency of the state. Its purpose is to render more effective service and improve administrative justice, particularly in matters pertaining to bar admission as well as disciplining and disbarring attorneys-at-law. No person other than a member of the State Bar may participate in the proceedings of any North Carolina court or otherwise engage in the practice of law.

The government of the State Bar is vested in a council, which is elected by the bar members from the state's various judicial districts. The council, in turn, elects the officers of the State Bar. To practice law in North Carolina, applicants must pass an examination, then be licensed by the Board of Law Examiners, which is appointed by the council. The council also promulgates and enforces rules of professional conduct.

"An Act to Provide for the Organization as an Agency of the State of North Carolina of The North Carolina State Bar, and for its Regulation, Powers, and Government, Including the Admission of Lawyers to Practice and Their Discipline and Disbarment." Public laws and resolutions passed by the General Assembly at its session of 1933. Charlotte [N.C.]: The Observer Printing House, Inc.1933. p.313-324. http://digital.ncdcr.gov/u?/p249901coll22,241717 (accessed November 15, 2012).

Comments

I had no idea the bar exam was created so long ago! Does the exam change from year to year or is it periodically updated? I didn't know that every state had it's own exam, do you have to pass the test in each state in order to practice law there?

Thanks for visiting NCpedia and taking the time to post a comment on this entry for the North Carolina State Bar.

Each state has its own requirements for licensing lawyers and admitting them to the state bar. You might find some helpful information about the process across the country on the website LawyerEdu.org athttp://www.lawyeredu.org/#1

You can also find additional information about the North Carolina bar exam on the North Carolina State Bar website at http://www.ncbar.gov/index.asp and on the website for the Board of Law Examiners of the State of North Carolina http://www.ncble.org/ (this is the organization that administers the bar exam).